FISHES OF THE NORTHERN COAST OF NEW JERSEY. 
379 
41. Prionotus palmipes (Mitchill). Pigjish; Bock Pigfish; Sea Bobin. 
Not so abundant during the summer months as P. strigatus , but more numerous 
in the fall. 
Prof. Baird, in his report on the fishes of Great Egg Harbor N. J., makes the 
following remarks on this species : 
When caught, this fish commences a loud croaking or harking, the sound apparently produced 
in the abdominal region. This is so loud and constant that in hauling a large seine the presence in 
the net of a single specimen of this gurnard, however small, could generally he determined by the 
peculiar sound emitted. For this reason it is sometimes called pigfish by the inhabitants. 
42. Phycis chuss (Walhaum). Hake; Ling; Thimble-eyed Ling. 
43. Phycis tenuis (Mitchill). Hake; Ling; Thimble-eyed Ling . 
Both of these fish occur off the New Jersey coast and are taken chiefly in winter 
on trawls set for cod. At times seven or eight fish are caught daily by one boat. 
In some places they have little value, bringing only J or 1 cent a pound, but in other 
localities they command the same price as cod. They weigh from 5 to 10 pounds each. 
44. Melanogrammus seglifinus (Linnaeus). Haddock. 
Not common. A few are caught in the line fishery for cod carried on from Sea- 
bright and other places. The fish arrive on the shores later than the cod. They have 
about the same market value as cod. 
45. Pollachius virens (Linnaeus). Pollack. 
Occurs sparingly in spring, and is caught in small numbers in pound nets in 
April and May. On July 1, 1892, a fish weighing 5 pounds was taken in a pound net 
at Bradley Beach. The average weight of the fish taken is 12 or 13 pounds. 
46. Gadus morrhua Linnaeus. Cod. 
The cod approaches the shores of the northern part of the New Jersey coast 
about November 5 to 8, and remains in the region until the first of May. When it 
first arrives it undergoes the spawning process, in the opinion of the fishermen, 
although an examination of some of the first arrivals showed that some had already 
spawned, some had immature eggs, and some were about ripe. They weigh from 5 
to 25 pounds, the average being 9 or 10 pounds. Hand lines, trawl lines, pound nets, 
and gill nets are used in their capture, the largest quantities being taken with 
lines. Cod are taken in the pound nets when they are first set jn April, in company with 
sea bass, mackerel, flounders, pollack, shad, etc.; a few are also occasionally caught 
early in May. The yield is always small and uncertain, however, and 100 pounds 
would probably be a large average catch to a net. 
One of the most interesting features of the important fisheries at Seabright is 
the recent introduction of gill nets in the cod fishery. The nets were first used in 
1891 and have not yet become firmly established, although the first experiments were 
considered satisfactory. The nets are 70 fathoms in length and are set close inshore. 
In 1891 five nets were operated from two boats ; from 500 to 1,800 pounds of fish were 
taken daily in three of the nets. 
47. Paralichthys dentatus (Linnaeus). Flounder ; Fluke; Splaice. 
This is the most important flatfish in the fisheries of this State. It is taken in 
large quantities with pound nets and lines. The common names given are by some 
fishermen used indifferently, while others make a distinction, based on size, which is 
not clear. The same names are also applied to other flounders. The most widely 
used common name in the pound-net region is splaice, an evident corruption of plaice, 
